In tonight's programme

Sabtu, 08 Januari 2011

The ringleaders of a gang which groomed and abused teenage girls in Derby in a campaign of rape and assault spanning two years have been handed indeterminate jail sentences.

Some children's charities say that such on-street grooming of young girls by older men, where girls are targeted outside, including at the school gates, is a growing problem.

But debate is raging over whether there is a racial element to the practice.

There have been claims that the majority of men convicted of on-street grooming have been Asians of Pakistani origin, and that most of their victims have been white.

However, today the authors of the first independent analysis of the issue have voiced concerns that limited data from a small, geographically concentrated area is being used to characterise a whole crime.

Jackie Long has been finding out where the truth lies.

Also tonight - Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said today that the US economy is showing signs of a "self-sustaining recovery", but is not growing fast enough to reduce high jobless levels.

His statement came despite Labor Department figures showing that the US unemployment rate dropped to 9.4% in December from 9.8% in November, the biggest since April 1998.

So America a safe bet for investors or not? Stephanie Flanders will be finding out.

And Stephen Smith will be bringing us an all-American fairy tale.

Do join us at 10.30pm on BBC Two.

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